If the saying holds that China's sneeze metaphorically inflicts a cold on the world, then mainland South-east Asian countries should be stricken with acute pneumonia by now. But such is not the case.

Located next to China, where the capital city of Wuhan in Hubei province is ground zero for the new coronavirus outbreak, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand are geographically on the front lines as it were, more exposed than most, via travel and trade, to the rapidly spreading contagion.